Clutch.



No. 709,77l. Patented Sept. 23, I902.

I P. A. HUUGHTALING.

. CLUTCH.

. zApplication filed June 3, 1902. (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

immgi ll'rtirn rains arnr rricn,

PAUL A. HOUGHTALING, OF RIVERTON, NEW JERSEY.

CLUTCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 709,771, datedSeptember 23, 1902.

Application filed June 3, 1902. Serial No. 110,05 9. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beitknown that I, PAUL A. HOUGHTALING, a citizen of the United States,residing in Riverton, New Jersey, have invented certain Improvements inClutches, of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists in certain improvements in clutches, and moreparticularly to an improved form of the clutch for which Letters Patentof the United States No. 688,644: were granted to me on the 10th day ofDe cember, 1901.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of simple andinexpensive construction which shall be actuated to operatively coupleor disconnect two rotatable members when certain variations of therelative speeds of these members take place. This object I attain ashereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of the interior of one form of myimproved clutch. Fig. 2 is a plan view of one of the rotatable membersof the clutch, showing the eccentric slots by which the mechanism of thesame is operated. Figs. 3 and 4 are plan views showing the interiorconstruction of two modifications of my invention. Fig. 5 is a sectionalelevation of my improved clutch, taken on the line 5 5, Fig. 1. Fig. 6is a sectional elevation of the modified form of my invention shown inFig. i and taken on the line 6 6 in said figure. Figs. 7, 8, and 9illustrate other modified forms of myimproved clutch, the plate formingone member thereof being removed in each case; and Fig. 10 is a verticalsectional elevation of the clutch, taken on the line 10 10, Fig. 9, theplate member being also omitted from this figure.

In the above drawings, A is a shaft or spindle, upon which is looselycarried a member,

(indicated by the letter 13,) this being in the present instance the hubof a wheel, a portion of whose spokes are shown at b. Keyed to the shaftA is a plate 0, in which are formed any required number of cam-slots 0,made eceentrically to the said shaft, the said plate being, in the formsof my device illustrated in the drawings, held to the shaft A by meansof a key a. It will be seen that in Figs. 1, 3, 7, and 8 the member B ismade in the shape of a circular box or casing, over which the plate 0fits as a cover, the interior of this casing being provided with teethI) and forming what is known as an internally-toothed ratchet-wheel.

From Figs. 5 and 6 it will be seen that this casing or ratchet-wheel Bis formed with an inwardly-projecting part b where the shaft A passesthrough it, and upon this hearing is supported an annular carrier D,provided with any desired number of arms 0 which have in them recessesor depressions for the reception of the correspondiugly-formed ends ofpawls E. As will be noted from the various figures, practically anydesired number of pawls may be employed, the said figures illustratingthe use of either one, two, three, or four of the same. The said pawls Eare in some instances made With cylindricallyformed ends c, designed tofit the recesses in the arms d of the carrier D, while their other endshave one or more toothed portions 6', designed to engage with the teethformed on the inside of the casing B. Fig. 3 illustrates the use ofpawls constructed with three teeth, and it is to be understood that thisnumber may be varied within any desired limits, according to the amountof power to be transmitted through the clutch.

The form of my invention illustrated in all i the figures except Figs. 3and 7 shows pins 6 projecting from one face of the pawls, this pinconsisting of a screw 6 entering the pawl and provided with a roller 6where it comes into engagement with the sides of the slots 0 of themember 0. If desired, the pins may be carried by the member C andoperate in slots 0', formed in the pawls, as illustrated in Figs. 3 and7 of the drawings. Further, it will be seen that, if desired, thecarrier for the pawls may be supported upon the inner surface of thatportion of the casing B which is shown in Figs. 1 and 3 as provided withratchet-teeth, the teeth in such construction being formed upon theinwardly-projecting portion 19 of the casing B, which formerly supportedthe carrier. Thus in Fig. 4: the

carrier B therein employed is shown as formed in the shape of a ringfitting the inside of the casing B. The inwardly-projecting arms 61 ofthis carrier are, as before, provided with recesses for the reception ofthe ICO ends 6 of the pawls E, and the outer ends 6 of these latter areformed so as to engage the toothed inwardly-projectin g portion 17 whichis preferably formed integral with the body of the casing or hub portionB, as illustrated in Fig. 6.

Further modifications of my invention are shown by Figs. 7 to 10,inclusive, in which the carrier D is shown as revolubly hung directlyupon the shaft A. In the first two of these figures the carrier isillustrated as having but a single pawl E, being provided with a hookedarm for the reception and support of the rather pointed end of saidpawl, which in one instance is retained in position by an arm cl,projecting from the same. In the other form the pawl is of such a sizeand the hooked end (1 of the carrier is such a length as to effectuallyprevent the pawl from becoming detached from said carrier. A logicaloutcome of the form of clutch illustrated in Fig. 4 is shown in Fig. 9,in which the pawl E is pivoted to a carrier hung directly on the shaft Aand lying in a plane other than that of the pawl and ratchet-teeth.

Any desired device may be employed to retain the casing B in arelatively fixed position upon the shaftA, and in the present instance Ihave shown a collar a, provided with a setscrew a for performing thisfunction.

In operation it will be seen that if it be desired to transmit powerfrom the shaft A to the wheel or similar device of which the easingB isthe hub revolution of said shaft, and hence of the plate 0, causes thepins 6 to be cam med to have their positions changed relatively to saidshaft by virtue of the cam action upon them of the sides of the slots 0.Such action causes the pawls E to turn in the recesses of the arms cl aspivots, thus almost immediately bringing their toothed ends a intoengagement with the teeth upon the interior of the casing B, whenfurther revolution of the shaft A and plate 0 will revolve the saidcasing and its attached parts. If now from any reason motion of theshaft A diminishes or ceases, the pins are forced inwardly by the sidesof the eccentricallyplaced slots, thereby throwing the toothed ends ofthe pawls out of engagement with the ratchet-teeth and disconnecting thetwo members of the clutch. Should the casing B and its attached partstend to continue in rotation after the two members of the clutch havebeen operatively disconnected, as above set forth, the carrier D,resting upon the bearingsurface formed by the inwardly-projectingportion 5 of said casing, will act as a brake to prevent suchrevolution, an action which may be greatly increased by the use of theconstruction illustrated in Fig. 4. Here the surface of the carrier incontact with the interior of the casing B is of relatively great extent,and upon the pawls being thrown out of contact with the ratchet-teeththe braking action may be, by proper construction of the parts, quitepronounced.

It will be noted from the drawings that it is entirely immaterialwhether the casing B or the shaftA be considered as the driving memberof the clutch, since the pawls are swung on their pivots whenever thereis a change in the relative rate of motion of these two members, itbeing similarly immaterial as to whether the pins 6 are on the pawls andthe slots 0 in the plate 0, or vice versa.

I claim as my invention 1. In a clutch, the combination with a drivingand a driven member of a device including a toothed wheel, pawlsconstructed to be engaged therewith and disengaged therefrom, a carrierfor the pawls supported by a portion of the toothed Wheel, pins foroperating said pawls and transmitting the power from the driving to thedriven member, and cams for actuating said pins and causing them toengage or to disengage from the toothed wheel, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a clutch, the combination of two members, one of the sameincluding a casing having ratchetteeth and a bearingsurface formedintegral with said casin g, a device provided with pawls carried on saidbearing-surface, pins for transmitting power from one of the members ofthe clutch to the other and also serving to operate said pawls,withmeans for causing the pawls to engage or disengage from theratchet-teeth, substantially as described.

3. The combination in a clutch,of two members, one of the same includinga structure having two substantially cylindrical surfaces extendingparallel to each other, ratchet-teeth on one of the surfaces and apawl-carrier supported on the other, pawls on the carrier, with means onthe second member for causing the pawls to engage with or disengage fromsaid ratchet-teeth when the relative speed of the members is varied,substantially as described.

4. The combinationin a clutch of two members, one including aninternally-toothed casing having a bearing portion, a pawl-carriersupported on said bearing portion, pawls pivoted to said carrier andplaced to engage with the teeth of the casing, the second memberincluding a shaft and a structure fixed thereto, said structure and thepawls comprising two parts of which one has cam-slots and the other haspins projecting into said slots whereby the pawls are caused to engagewith or disengage from the said teeth under certain conditions of speedvariation of the two members, substantially as described.

5. In a clutch, the combination of a toothed ratchet-wheel, a carrier, apawl or pawls supported thereby, means for operating the pawls, the sameincluding projecting portions for directly transmitting power from onemember of the clutch to the other and means other than the portion ofthe carrier for the support of the pawl, whereby the pawl or pawls areretained in operative position within the clutch, substantially asdescribed.

6. In aclutch, the combination of a toothed proximately the plane of theteeth of said,

Wheel, a carrier for said pawls lying in a plane outside of but parallelto the said plane of pawls and ratchet-teeth, with means for operatingthe pawls, the same including projecting portions and a device foroperating the same whereby said portions are made to directly transmitpower between the members of the clutch, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

PAUL A. HOUGHTALING.

Witnesses:

ROY RAUDENBUSI-I, Jos. H. KLEIN.

